Disarmament and International Security Committee

Topics

Lethal Autonomous Weapon Systems, also known as “killer robots”, are capable of making combat decisions without human intervention. Autonomous weapons are used in many developed military countries around the world, ranging from the US and Russia to Israel and South Korea. Currently there is a dearth of international regulations to govern their use. In general, proponents of autonomous weapons argue that they could reduce the number of soldiers on the field, saving more lives, and can be used in instances where human response may not be rapid enough. Yet it is undeniable that autonomous weapons raise a number of important security, moral and ethical questions. Can states guarantee that autonomous weapons are able to distinguish between combatants and non-combatants? Who should take responsibility for a misstep by an autonomous weapon? And perhaps most importantly, should the decision to take a human life ever be delegated to machines?

The idea of a Weapons of Mass Destruction Free Zone in the Middle East has been floating around ever since 1990. As conflicts in the Middle East now include more and more parties, both from the region and outside it, there is a growing hope that a WMDFZ agreement could mitigate unnecessary loss of life, especially innocent civilians’. However, resolutions on non-proliferation and the establishment of a WMD have been indefinitely extended, with no signs of progress. Making matters worse, Israel has been uncompromising on its arsenal of nuclear weapons, and Iran’s nuclear deal is on the brink of collapse. Delegates will have to debate on a multitude of issues, from the scope of Weapons of Mass Destruction, to the size of the zone, to measures ensuring the longevity of such.

Chairs

Head Chair: Caryn Chiah

Caryn was in the middle of completing a difficult math assignment when she was abruptly but gently (and definitely not in a threatening manner) reminded of the (very) fast-approaching deadline for this task. As such: She is a tired Year 6 humanities student taking HELM, is also a member of Raffles Press, and enjoys joking about how she should have joined a sports CCA instead of two academic clubs. But rest assured that these are merely jokes, and Caryn looks forward to chairing you at RMUN’19! She hopes that debate will be exciting, productive, and more importantly, will ignite your passion for, and deepen your understanding of international relations and global issues. Beyond that, she wants to encourage all delegates to take this both as a learning experience, and also a fun(!) activity. Please feel free to approach her with any concerns or questions during the conference, or even before the conference, and she will do her best to address all of them!

Deputy Chair: Mitchell Chew

Mitchell was the last chair to submit his bio and so has a cautionary tale to all delegates to never procrastinate, for there will be retribution (of course, he is speaking for your position papers, and not from his own situation). If not for this bio, he would either be watching Game of Thrones clips (being too lazy to watch the full episodes), scratching his head over the latest organic chem question or doing both at the same time, which is very unwise. He also enjoys reading articles on UI design, wishes to go to Barcelona and has a strong hatred for brown rice. In addition to his Y6 PCME schoolwork, he often spends too much time in Council-related work, which he loves pouring over for the creative freedom it offers and the close friends he made. Similarly, the opportunity for out-of-the-box problem solving and the chance to make long lasting friendships was what grew his fondness for MUNs, which he hopes every delegate in DISEC can also achieve and appreciate. He can be contacted at mitchellchew2@gmail.com for questions or subreddit suggestions!

Deputy Chair: Jesper Loo

Jesper is a Year 5 student, taking the normal (and boring) BCME combination. He is very identifiable in large crowds thanks to his white hair which is very useful when you want to take a photo with him during the photo-taking session! Despite studying a science course, Jesper is extremely interested in current affairs happening around the world and often reads the news (which makes him procrastinates and not want to finish his tutorials btw). RMUN will be his 6th (?) MUN and he apologises for not attending more MUNs due to his other school commitments back then such as Water Polo and Interact Club but please be rest assured that he will definitely be a very good chair! For many people seeing him for the first time, they might think that he is really angry and pissed at something but don’t worry he truly isn’t but just has a RBF. Please feel free to talk to him because he is truly very friendly and hopes to find link-minded individuals like him who enjoys both the sciences and the humanities:) He wishes that all of his delegates will enjoy the RMUN experience and hopes that you will look forward to it!